Seat pad and vehicular seat

Abstract

To suppress an abnormal sound generated when foamed bodies with different hardness rub together.SOLUTION: In a cushion pad 20, a first pad part 20A and a second pad part 20B composed of urethane foam with different hardness are foaming-molded integrally, a different hardness groove part 36 extends along a border between the first pad part 20A and the second pad part 20B. In the different hardness groove part 36, a bottom part side is formed intermittently, and on the bottom part side of the different hardness groove part 36, the first pad part 20A and the second pad part 20B are connected by a plurality of connection parts 38 in a right-left direction. By this arrangement, the different hardness groove part 36 is hardly crushed by an input or the like from a sitting person, thereby suppressing generation of an abnormal sound when foamed bodies with different hardness rub together.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle seat, and particularly to a seat pad.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 below discloses a vehicle seat in which a sound-absorbing pad that is more flexible than a seat cushion pad is provided on the back side of the seat cushion pad.

Prior Art Document

Patent Document

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In a foam molding die for manufacturing a seat pad of different hardness foams in which a plurality of foams having different hardnesses are integrally foam-molded, a partition plate or the like may be provided to prevent the raw materials of different types of foams from mixing with each other. In such a case, the formed seat pad has a configuration in which a groove is formed at the boundary between two foams having different hardnesses. In a vehicle seat equipped with such a seat pad, the above groove is crushed by an input from a seated person or the like, and the foams having different hardnesses rub against each other. As a result, abnormal noise may be generated due to the stick-slip phenomenon.

[0005] In consideration of the above facts, an object of the present invention is to obtain a seat pad and a vehicle seat that can suppress the generation of abnormal noise caused by rubbing between foams having different hardnesses.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The seat pad of the first aspect includes a first pad portion formed of a foam, a second pad portion formed of a foam having a different hardness from the foam, the second pad portion being foam-molded integrally with the first pad portion, and a groove portion extending along the boundary between the first pad portion and the second pad portion and having at least the bottom side formed intermittently.

[0007] In the seat pad of the first aspect, the first pad portion and the second pad portion formed of foams having different hardnesses are foam-molded integrally, and the groove portion extends along the boundary between the first pad portion and the second pad portion. Since at least the bottom side of this groove portion is formed intermittently, it is difficult for the groove portion to be crushed by an input from the seated person or the like. Thereby, generation of abnormal noise due to rubbing between foams having different hardnesses can be suppressed.

[0008] In the seat pad of the second aspect, in the first aspect, the opening side of the groove portion extends continuously.

[0009] In the seat pad of the second aspect, the groove portion extending along the boundary between the first pad portion and the second pad portion has the bottom side formed intermittently and the opening side extending continuously. When molding this seat pad, by partitioning the opening side of the groove portion with a partition plate or the like, it is possible to suppress the mixing of the raw liquids of the foams of the respective pad portions near the above-mentioned boundary.

[0010] The vehicle seat of the third aspect includes the seat pad of the first aspect or the second aspect, a frame that supports the seat pad, and a trim cover that covers the seat pad.

[0011] In the vehicle seat of the third aspect, the seat pad supported by the frame is covered with the trim cover. Since this seat pad is of the first aspect or the second aspect, the above-described effects can be obtained.

Advantages of the Invention

[0012] As described above, according to the seat pad and the vehicle seat according to the present invention, it is possible to suppress the generation of abnormal noise caused by rubbing between foams having different hardnesses.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0013]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0014] Hereinafter, a vehicle seat 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7. In each figure, some reference numerals may be omitted for ease of viewing the drawings. Also, the arrows FR, RH, and UP appropriately shown in each figure indicate the front, right, and upper directions of the vehicle seat 10, respectively. Hereinafter, when simply using the directions of front, rear, left, right, up, and down for description, it shall indicate the directions with respect to the vehicle seat 10.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle seat 10 according to the present embodiment includes a seat cushion 12 that supports the buttocks and thighs of the seated person, a seat back 14 that supports the back of the seated person, and a headrest 16 that supports the head of the seated person. This vehicle seat 10 is, for example, the driver's seat of a so-called right-hand drive vehicle.

[0016] The seat cushion 12 has a frame 18 (see FIG. 5), a cushion pad 20 (see FIGS. 2 to 5) which is a cushion material supported by the frame 18, and a trim cover 22 (see FIGS. 1 and 5) that covers the cushion pad 20. The cushion pad 20 corresponds to the "seat pad" in the present invention. In FIG. 5, B is the buttocks of the seated person.

[0017] The frame 18 is made of, for example, a press-formed metal plate material or a metal pipe material. The cushion pad 20 is made of a foam (urethane foam here) and is attached to the frame 18 from above. The trim cover 22 is formed in a bag shape by sewing a plurality of skin pieces made of, for example, a cloth material, leather, synthetic leather, etc., and is put on the cushion pad 20 from above.

[0018] The cushion pad 20 is a urethane of different hardness foams with different hardnesses, and has a main part 24 that supports the buttocks and thighs of the seated person from below, left and right side support parts 26 that support the buttocks and thighs of the seated person from the side, and a rear part 28 that connects the left and right side support parts 26 in the left-right direction behind the main part 24. The left and right side support parts 26 and the rear part 28 protrude above the main part 24.

[0019] This cushion pad 20 is formed with a hanging groove portion 30 for hanging the trim cover 22 into the cushion pad 20, and sewing margin grooves 32 and 34 for accommodating the sewing margin of the trim cover 22. These hanging groove portion 30 and sewing margin grooves 32 and 34 are each open upward. The hanging groove portion 30 is formed between the main portion 24, the left and right side support portions 26, and the rear portion 28, and has a substantially U-shaped opening on the front side in plan view. The sewing margin groove 32 is formed between the rear end portions of the left and right side support portions 26 and the left and right end portions of the rear portion 28, respectively, extends substantially in the front-rear direction, and the front end portion communicates with the hanging groove portion 30. The sewing margin groove 34 is formed in the rear portions of the left and right side support portions 26, respectively, extends substantially in the left-right direction, and the inner ends in the left-right direction communicate with the hanging groove portion 30.

[0020] The left and right side support portions 26 are each formed with different hardness groove portions 36. The left and right different hardness groove portions 36 each correspond to the "groove portion" in the present invention and are open upward. The left and right different hardness groove portions 36 extend in the front-rear direction near the center in the left-right direction of the left and right side support portions 26. The front end portions of the left and right different hardness groove portions 36 are bent inward in the left-right direction and communicate with the hanging groove portion 30. The rear end portions of the left and right different hardness groove portions 36 communicate with the left and right sewing margin grooves 32.

[0021] The cushion pad 20 having the above configuration is composed of a first pad portion 20A (the portion not dotted in FIG. 2) and a second pad portion 20B (the portion dotted in FIG. 2). The first pad portion 20A is composed of the portions of the left and right side support portions 26 that are on the front side of the left and right sewing margin grooves 32 and on the inner side in the left-right direction of the left and right different hardness groove portions 36, the main portion 24, and the rear portion 28. The second pad portion 20B is composed of the portions of the left and right side support portions 26 that are on the front side of the left and right sewing margin grooves 32 and on the outer side in the left-right direction of the left and right different hardness groove portions 36, and the portions of the left and right side support portions 26 that are on the rear side of the left and right sewing margin grooves 34.

[0022] The first pad portion 20A and the second pad portion 20B are integrally foam-molded. The hardness of the urethane foam constituting the second pad portion 20B is set higher than the hardness of the urethane foam constituting the first pad portion 20A. Thereby, the support performance of the hip and thigh portions by the left and right side support portions 26 is enhanced.

[0023] The left and right different-hardness groove portions 36 extend substantially in the front-rear direction along the boundary between the first pad portion 20A and the second pad portion 20B. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the left and right different-hardness groove portions 36 extend continuously in the front-rear direction on the opening side (i.e., the upper side), and are formed intermittently on the bottom side (i.e., the lower side). On the bottom side of the left and right different-hardness groove portions 36, a plurality of connecting portions 38 arranged at intervals in the extending direction of the left and right different-hardness groove portions 36 are provided. Each connecting portion 38 connects the first pad portion 20A and the second pad portion 20B in the left-right direction. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, in the left and right different-hardness groove portions 36, the portions where the connecting portions 38 are provided are shallower, and the portions where the connecting portions 38 are not provided are deeper.

[0024] For the foam molding die (not shown) for foam-molding the cushion pad 20 having the above configuration, an inner side blade 40 shown in FIG. 6 and an outer side blade 42 shown in FIG. 7 are provided. The inner side blade 40 is a partition plate for molding the left different-hardness groove portion 36, and the outer side blade 42 is a partition plate for molding the right different-hardness groove portion 36. A plurality of notches 44 for forming a plurality of connecting portions 38 are respectively formed in the inner side blade 40 and the outer side blade 42. The plurality of notches 44 are formed only at one end side in the width direction (the lower end side in FIGS. 6 and 7) of the inner side blade 40 and the outer side blade 42, and are not formed at the other end side in the width direction (the upper end side in FIGS. 6 and 7) of the inner side blade 40 and the outer side blade 42.

[0025] In this embodiment, the depth dimension D1 (see FIG. 5) of the portion where the connecting portion 38 is not provided in each different-hardness groove portion 36 is set within a range of, for example, 20 mm to 40 mm. The depth dimension D2 (see FIGS. 6 and 7) of the portion where the connecting portion 38 is not provided in each different-hardness groove portion 36 is set within a range of, for example, 10 mm to 20 mm. The width dimension W (see FIGS. 6 and 7) of each connecting portion 38 is set within a range of, for example, 3 mm to 10 mm. The pitch P (see FIGS. 6 and 7) at which a plurality of connecting portions 38 are arranged is set within a range of, for example, 10 mm to 30 mm. By setting each dimension in this way, it is possible to effectively suppress the mixing of the stock solution of the urethane foam of the first pad portion 20A and the stock solution of the urethane foam of the second pad portion 20B.

[0026] In the vehicle seat 10 having the above configuration, the cushion pad 20 supported by the frame 18 is covered with the trim cover 22. In this cushion pad 20, the first pad portion 20A and the second pad portion 20B formed of urethane foams having different hardnesses are integrally foam-molded, and a different-hardness groove portion 36 extends along the boundary between the first pad portion 20A and the second pad portion 20B. The bottom side of this different-hardness groove portion 36 is formed intermittently. On the bottom side of the different-hardness groove portion 36, the first pad portion 20A and the second pad portion 20B are connected in the left-right direction by a plurality of connecting portions 38. As a result, it becomes difficult for the different-hardness groove portion 36 to be crushed by an input from a seated person or the like. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the generation of abnormal noise due to rubbing between urethane foams having different hardnesses.

[0027] Further, since the different-hardness groove portion 36 extending along the boundary between the first pad portion 20A and the second pad portion 20B has a continuously extending opening side, when the cushion pad 20 is molded, the inner side blade 40 and the outer side blade 42 provided in the foam molding die are used. By partitioning the opening side of the different-hardness groove portion 36 by the other end side in the width direction (that is, the side where a plurality of notches 44 are not formed), it is possible to effectively suppress the mixing of the stock solutions of the urethane foams of the respective pad portions 20A and 20B near the above boundary.

[0028] In the above embodiment, the different hardness groove portion 36 is configured such that the bottom side is formed intermittently and the opening side extends continuously. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the opening side of the different hardness groove portion 36 may also be formed intermittently. In that case, for example, by narrowing the width dimension of the connecting portion 38, it is possible to suppress the mixing of the above-mentioned stock solutions.

[0029] Also, in the above embodiment, the cushion pad 20, which is the cushion material of the seat cushion 12, has been described as the seat pad in the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The back pad, which is the cushion material of the seat back, may also be the seat pad in the present invention.

[0030] In addition, the present invention can be implemented with various modifications without departing from the gist thereof. Of course, the scope of the rights of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.

Explanation of reference numerals

[0031] 10 Vehicle seat 18 Frame 20 Cushion pad (seat pad) 20A First pad portion 20B Second pad portion 22 Trim cover 36 Different hardness groove portion (groove portion)

Claims

1. A first pad portion composed of a foam, A second pad portion composed of a foam having a different hardness from the foam and integrally foam-molded with the first pad portion, A groove portion extending along the boundary between the first pad portion and the second pad portion and having at least the bottom side formed intermittently, A seat pad provided with the above.

2. The seat pad according to claim 1, wherein the groove portion has a continuously extending opening side.

3. The seat pad according to claim 1 or claim 2, A frame supporting the seat pad, A trim cover covering the seat pad, A vehicle seat provided with the above.

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